AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
183 
views, preconceived and practical, I shall en¬ 
deavor to deduce some data, which are the re¬ 
sults of a very extended series of observations 
made in hundreds of localities, with every vari¬ 
ety of exposure. 
Low Lands, river bottoms and valleys, should 
generally be avoided, as unsuited, on many ac¬ 
counts, for the grape culture; chiefly for the 
following reasons: they are very subject to late 
vernal frosts, which are often disastrous to the 
tender young shoots of the vine; they are also 
obnoxious to early frosts in the autumn, unless 
where protected by fogs ; they do not enjoy so 
free a circulation of air as is desirable for the 
vine; the soil is apt to be too rich in vegetable 
matter, and, if not underlaid by gravel, the sub¬ 
jacent moisture will be injurious. The early 
vine-planters at Yevay, Indiana, committed this 
mistake, and were soon driven to the hill sides, 
or discouraged, and relinquished the culture to 
such an extent that the products of that whole 
region is now quite insignificant. 
Hill sides are generally preferred, and the 
majority select those with a southern exposure 
—those sloping eastwardly to meet the early 
sunshine, and those with a western declivity, 
to receive the health-giving zephyrs, are also 
much preferred by some close observers, who 
claim for either circumstances, quite as much 
value as for the full meridian rays of our sum¬ 
mer sun, while others consider a northern slope 
still more advantageous, because of the greater 
immunity from the spring frosts, where the 
buds are not forced so early as in more sunny 
situations. These hill sides are generally so 
precipitous as to render benching or terracing 
necessary, and where the horizontal layers of 
limestone are freely mixed with the soil, these 
stones are used for the construction of walls, to 
support the earth of the terraces; when absent, 
the benches are constructed of the turf or soils, 
and they are preserved by the growth of the 
grass. The presence of small loose stones is 
much valued by some vignerons. 
Hill tops, on account of their elevation and 
free exposure to sun, and especially to the stir¬ 
ring breeze, are, in my opinion, decidedly the 
best position for the site of the vineyard. 
Here we have much less liability to vernal 
frosts—perfect exposure to the sun and air, 
for the dissipation of too abundant moisture, 
and an almost complete immunity from fogs 
which may be very valuable to protect the 
deeper valleys from late frosts, but which are 
exceedingly injurious to the swelling grape, in 
the heats of June, the most critical period with 
this fruit. Upon these hill tops we often find 
an abundant natural drainage, and a soil of pe¬ 
culiar excellence and adaptation to the vine—a 
deep, rich, sandy or friable loam, with clay 
enough in its composition to give it a proper 
tenacity, but not enough to render it heavy, — 
and indicating a richly varied list of constitu¬ 
ents—in such a soil, found especially upon the 
ridges of our river hills, there is a smaller pro¬ 
portion of lime, and a large amount of organic 
matter; in this the grape is found to flourish 
remarkably. 
I shall, therefore, conclude this number by 
recommending an elevated position, well ex¬ 
posed to both sun and wind, and a rich friable 
soil, of varied ingredients, rather than the stiff 
limestone clays of the hills sides. 
- « - 
A Costly Plant. —-A camelia plant, the 
largest in the country, was bought in New-York 
recently, by Charles Copeland, Esq., of Boston, 
for jive hundred dollars ! It is said to be large 
enough to fill a moderate-sized green-house, and 
will yield about three thousand blossoms. It is 
thought to be a good speculation, as double 
white camelia flowers are cheap at 25 cents each, 
and the demand for bridals, parties and bouquets 
is large and increasing. 
A man of sense will never swear. The least 
pardonable of all vices to which the folly or cu¬ 
pidity of man is addicted, is profanity. 
A VISIT TO THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE AND 
VAN DIEMEN’S LAND. 
How I thought of home at the Cape, that 
paradise of flowers! Though the first bloom 
was over on my arrival, yet enough was left to 
show what had been, nor without seeing can 
you imagine the profusion. There are actually 
no weeds. Our favorite little blue Lobelia is the 
chickweed of the place; the ditches and all 
damp places are filled with Cape Lilies, Heaths 
of all colors, the Erica, I believe coccina, grow¬ 
ing very high, Diosmas, Crassulas, &c., &c. I 
saw a great deal of the Cape; we were above a 
fortnight there, and traveled about a hundred 
and eighty miles into the interior. With the 
general appearance of the country I was disap¬ 
pointed ; there are no trees. The silver tree, a 
Protea, is the highest indigenous plant that 1 
saw. There are oaks in and about Cape Town, 
Constantia, Wyneberg, &c., and, indeed, wher¬ 
ever a house is built, a few trees are planted for 
shade ; but the country, for miles, has nothing 
higher than heath, and for the greater part of 
the year is sterile-looking. But in the season 
the whole face is covered with flowers; and 
such a face ! Fancy acres of heaths, of all col¬ 
ors, interspersed with Gladioles, Ixias, Wat- 
sonias, Babianas, Lachenalias, &c., without end, 
all growing and flourishing in their native lux 
uriance. Some bunches of Mesembryanthe- 
mums, near Sir Lowry Cole’s pass, were actu¬ 
ally too bright to look at. I lived in one con¬ 
stant whirl of delight, that ecstacy in which we 
behold perfection. I could not see fast enough. 
Most of the Ixias were out of bloom, but their 
remains were like patches of a hay-field in seed, 
only the stems closer together. Myrtle hedges 
were eight and ten feet high ; the one I saw at 
Sir John Herschell’s must have been more, and 
as close and substantial as our best holly 
hedges. We visited Villette’s and Baron Lud¬ 
wig’s garden, but where the whole country is a 
garden, these were of less interest. The Melia 
Azedarach, with its sweet lilac blossoms, is a 
beautiful and ornamental tree, which I did not 
see wild. We visited the Constantias; Great 
Constantia is beautiful, the soil is white, and 
looks like lime and sand intimately mixed. I 
thought of our gardeners’ recommendation of 
lime rubbish for vines. 
To the Cape, Van Diemen’s Land is a direct 
contrast. This is a country of hills, fringed to 
the very top, and perhaps about the thickest 
vegetation in the world. All is evergreen, and 
one dense mass of gloom. At first sight it is 
sombre enough, but, like a dark beauty, it has 
its charms; the wood is chiefly “ gum” (Euca¬ 
lyptus,) growing to an immense height, and 
throwing its long white arms about in a wild 
Salvator style. The young “ gums” are beauti¬ 
ful, and their new shoots of reddish brown 
lightening into a paler hue, and deepening into 
myrtle green, with the light new shoots of the 
“ wattle” (Acacia,) give a rich beauty of color¬ 
ing, delightful to the eye of a painter. Nature 
here must be painted to the life; there is noth¬ 
ing to soften. 
There is a harshness and dryness in the tex¬ 
ture of vegetation here that is very peculiar; 
even their kangaroo grass (Anthistiria Aus¬ 
tralis,) which is considered so nourishing, is hard 
and hairy, or rather wiry. The flowering 
shrubs are extremely pretty, but the flowers are 
very small. The Epacris impressa is in great 
quantities every where, but Heaths have not as 
yet been successfully cultivated here, and there 
are none native. The soil is very dry. But 
cultivation of any kind is only creeping in. A 
Horticultural Society has been formed at Laun¬ 
ceston, and it is to be hoped knowledge and 
emulution may thus be excited. With Science 
and judgment every thing and any thing may 
be done here; wherever English trees are 
planted there they flourish, but they are few 
and far between. The Sweetbriar is now seen 
in the woods, and grows to an immense size. 
The quantity of flowers and fruit, such as they 
are, is beyond belief, but there are known of the 
best kinds. Think of grafts here bearing the 
first year, an earnest of what might be. I suc¬ 
ceeded in bringing here alive, but in bad health, 
the Lilies of the Valley ; four leaves are green, 
the only morsel in the southern hemisphere.— 
J. B., in London Flor ist. 
A PERSIAN GARDEN. 
On my first entering this bower of fairy-land, 
(indeed I may call it,) the very garden of Beauty, 
I was struck with the appearance of two rose- 
trees, full fourteen feet high, laden with thou¬ 
sands of flowers, in ever}' degree of expansion, 
and of a bloom and delicacy of scent that im¬ 
bued the whole atmosphere with the most ex¬ 
quisite perfume. Indeed, I believe that in no 
country of the world does the rose grow in such 
perfection as in Persia; in no country is it so 
cultivated and prized by the natives. Their 
gardens and courts are crowded with its plants, 
their rooms ornamented with vases filled with 
its gathered bunches, and every bath strewed 
with the full-blown flowers, plucked from the 
ever-replenished stems. Even the humblest in¬ 
dividual, who pays a piece of copper money 
for a few whiffs of kalioun, feels a double en¬ 
joyment when he finds it stuck with a bud from 
his dear native tree ! But in this delicious gar¬ 
den of Negauristan the eye and the smell were 
not the only senses regaled by the presence of 
the rose. The ear was enchanted by the wild 
and beautiful notes of multitudes of nightingales, 
whose warblings seem to increase in melody 
and softness with the unfolding of tjieir favorite 
flowers ; verifying the song of their poet, who 
says, “ When the roses fade, when the charms 
of the bower are passed away, the fond tale of 
the nightingale no longer animates the scene.”— 
Sir Robert Porter, in 1820. 
--• • «- 
Rare. —Years ago a blunt Vermont farmer, 
not altogether versed in the public literature of 
fashionable cookery, having by hard knocks 
acquired considerable property, took it into his 
head to visit Boston, and started accordingly 
with his best one-horse gig. Stopping near 
noon, at one of the “smart” villages on the 
route, he put up for a time and ordered dinner. 
When asked what he preferred, he mentioned 
beef steak, whereupon the landlord inquired 
whether he wouid have it rare or well done. 
This was a stumper for our friend, but think¬ 
ing there might be something “glorious” in the 
“ uncertainty,” he assumed the air of one “ who 
knew the bricks,” and ordered it rare. All 
things in readiness, our hero took a seat at the 
table and commmenced a vigorous onslought on 
the smoking viands placed before him. At the 
first cut of the steak, blood very generously fol¬ 
lowed the knife, at which he started back in as¬ 
tonishment and rang the bell furiously. Di¬ 
rectly a waiter answered the summons and in¬ 
quired what he wished. 
“ I want this beef cooked,” said the guest. 
“ But you ordered it rare,” replied the waiter. 
“I know it,” said the guest, assuming to un¬ 
derstand the matter fully, “but it is not quite 
right; you may take it out and rare it over 
again !—Our Drawer. 
-- 
An Ingenious Riddle. —It was done when it 
was begun, it was done when it was half done, 
and yet it wasn't done when it was finished. 
Now what was it? Of course your can’t guess. 
Will this do? 
Timothy Johnson courted Susannah Dunn. 
It was Dunn when it was begun, it was Dunn 
when it was half done, and wasn’t Dunn when 
it was done—for it was Johnson. 
Honest. —A very honest chap in Boston, who 
wishes to sell his horse, advertises it as fol¬ 
lows : 
“ For sale, a brown horse, with a Roman nose 
in condition, and very fond of traveling—hav¬ 
ing run away four times within a week.” 
